MCLC: preferential treatment for foreigners

[Denton, Kirk]

MCLC LIST
From: pjmooney <pjmooney at me.com>
Subject: preferential treatment for foreigners
***********************************************************

Following is an animation on the ChinaSmack website titled "Preferential
Treatment and Status for Foreigners in China."

This Chinese-languge animation exaggerates all the perks foreigners in
China enjoy, but it does highlight the unequal treatment of migrant
workers. And the comments of Chinese netizens is interesting, as always.

Paul

===========================================================

Source: China Smack (7/21/13):
http://www.chinasmack.com/2013/videos/preferential-treatment-and-status-for
-foreigners-in-china.html

Preferential Treatment and Status for Foreigners in China

On Youku <http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XNTgxOTM4MDI0.html> & QQ
<http://v.qq.com/boke/page/j/v/8/j011546ztv8.html?_out=8>:

Beijing has two types of “lao wai“. One type are the wai di ren
<http://www.chinasmack.com/glossary#WDR> that come from various parts of
our motherland, numbering 8 million. The other type are the wai guo ren
who come from various parts of the world, numbering about 200,000. Chinese
have always been hospitable, naturally treating “lao wai” with the utmost
of care and consideration. In Beijing, they enjoy “super-national
treatment/status” [preferential treatment and status above those of local
citizens]. The only thing is, when it comes to “wai guo ren” and “wai di
ren“, although there is just one Chinese character of difference, there’s
quite a bit of difference in how they are treated.

Transcript of the above video (or view our English subtitled copy on
YouTube <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gqc6OPqfK_I>):

老外 lao wai, short for people from elsewhere. This is then split into “外国
人” 
wai guo ren [people from another country, foreigner] and “外地人” wai di ren
<http://www.chinasmack.com/glossary#WDR> [people from another part of the
country, from out of town, outsider, non-local, migrant]. Both surnamed “
外”, but one in the hearts of the people are elite, magnanimous, and
high-class, whereas the other kind are often ridiculed: “You’re a country
bumpkin!”

In Beijing, there are up to seven million “laowai” who have come from
various parts of the motherland. There are about 200,000 laowai from
various parts of the world.

China, as a country of etiquette since ancient times, is of course all
about showing great consideration and hospitality when it comes to its
treatment of its international friends! A foreigner who comes to Beijing
to work and live can enjoy this series of super-national treatment
[preferential treatment above the country's own citizens] —— Home
purchases, tax cuts,gaokao college entrance examination, education,
multiple children.

Whereas wai di ren, *cough cough*, as one of our own, let’s just not
quibble over some self-sacrifice, okay?
So, what exactly is the difference with the difference in one Chinese
character between 外国人and 外地人?
Firstly, house.

If wai di ren want to buy a house in Beijing, you have to pay five years
of social insurance or have proof of having paid five years of individual
taxes before you qualify to buy a home in this center of the universe.
If you happen to have had a break in the middle where you changed jobs and
didn’t work for two months, or if your employer unfortunately also happens
to be non-local, congratulations, you’ve won the lottery, make another
five-year plan [of working for a local Beijing employer paying social
insurance/individual taxes to Beijing].
However, it’s much easier for foreigners. You only have to work one year
in Beijing, then you can buy a home, sell it, buy, sell, buy, sell, buy,
sell~~~~ “I love China!”

Secondly, taxes.

One can never get away from paying taxes living in this world. Working in
Beijing, any citizen who earns more than 3,500 yuan per month has to pay
taxes. Whereas foreigners… due to [government] worries that high prices
may result in them unable to get enough to eat or have enough to wear,
only if they make more than 4800 yuan do they need to pay taxes.

If foreigners want to start a business in China, there are even more
preferential treatment and happiness. Not only can you register [a
company] smoothly, what is even more important is: 1. No taxes for the
first and second year! 2. Half income tax for the third to fifth year! 3.
Continued tax cuts after the fifth year (for some foreign enterprises)!

Thirdly, children.

As long as you’re a Chinese citizen, you better have less children and
plant more trees. Whereas foreigners, you can have as many [children] as
you want, you can even have enough to make a football/soccer team and it’s
no problem.

Naturally, once you have children, they’ll need education. As long as you
get a “Chinese green card” [long-term/permanent residency], foreigners can
enjoy the same educational treatment that local people’s children get. As
for the children of wai di ren, schooling in Beijing? Taking the gaokao
college entrance examination in Beijing? Impossible!

Previously there was a report of a wai di child who lived in Beijing with
his wai di father, but in his senior year of high school discovered that
he could not take the gaokao college entrance examination. So, he could
only go to his mother who was far away in America, and after getting an
American green card, everything was immediately solved.

“Teacher! This is my proof of admissions to the test, a green card.”

“No problem! The gaokao welcomes you, and 10 points extra [bonus to final
score]!”

Though this was fake news, as long as a foreigner has [long-term residency
in China], you indeed can participate in the gaokao in Beijing. Once in
university, a high-end, luxurious, high-class foreign students dormitory
is immediately available for you to move in. With air conditioning, dear!

Wai di ren can only be jealous, envious, and hateful!

You see, in order to let foreigners blend into Beijing better, we truly
bend over backwards and do everything we can. “Being a foreigner is quite
nice.”

As for wai di ren, we might as well talk about the problem of achieving
world peace.

However, what if “laowai” don’t want to live in Beijing anymore?

The haze [pollution] that lasted half a year made many foreigners consider
returning to the embrace of their motherlands.

Whereas wai di ren…

“Darling, I wanna go home…”

“Fuck you! You are only allowed to come back after you’ve paid off the
mortgage!”

“What is this? We’re all “lao wai”, but why is our treatment so different?”

Because Confucius once said, “Is it not delightful to have friends come
from afar!” It’s just that the further they are from, the more delightful
it is!

Comments from QQ <http://v.qq.com/boke/page/j/v/8/j011546ztv8.html?_out=8>:
色空:

In many of our countrymen’s noses, even the fart of a foreigner is
fragrant.


╰★缘份★╮:

Foreigners saying Chinese people are an inferior people is one thing, but
even Chinese officials believe its own people are lower class people.
Cowards, weakness from one’s bones.


小楼听风雨:

Their children are all in [foreigners' countries], could they afford to
not treat laowai <http://www.chinasmack.com/glossary#%E8%80%81%E5%A4%96>
better?


LED亮化照明 吴R:

Laowai loses a bike and we’ll help them find it, but when it’s a Chinese
person? Fuck, you can beg and they won’t care, and just make a report of
it. If you have a dispute with a foreigner or go to court, China will only
severely punish Chinese people.


√ ▲丶尕 叶:

It is precisely because of this that people abroad look down upon us. You
see how people look down on Chinese people who go abroad, sigh, I wonder
what’s wrong with China. Such a sense of inferiority.


甜美的小世界づ:

I completely do not understand, really. Why does a portion of Chinese
people so blindly worship the foreign…? Truly it is baffling. They’re
humans and you’re human too. Where are you inferior to them? There truly
are too many idiots.


Bernabéu.:

Abroad, the people who are most bullied are Chinese people. In China, the
people who are most bullied are Chinese people. I better hurry and return
to Mars.


高高在上:

Being friendly and hospitable is right, but don’t blindly worship the
foreign.


长青树:

Our countrymen’s mentality of blindly worshiping the foreign was all
manufactured by our lousy government officials!


江豚的微笑:

Actually the laowai who come to China have all been washed out from their
own countries, yet we treat them as treasures, shouldn’t we really reflect
on this???


梦盈:

When can Chinese people be of one mind, united when facing foreigners, and
have backbone!


拍拍GG男装时尚官方店:

I’m only going to say one thing: Late-Qing Dynasty. Nothing else needs to
be said.


骏马:

Why do Chinese people only know how to push around Chinese people!
Speechless!


2012:

The laowai in my office, has violated traffic regulations over 100 times,
had over 60 points deducted [from his license], stopped so many times, but
the moment they see he’s a laowai, they let him go.


健康第一:

How can we call them “laowai“? So uncivilized. We should greet them with
“Hello, Mister Superior Foreigner!” Now that’s the proper etiquette of the
Heavenly Kingdom <http://www.chinasmack.com/glossary#%E5%A4%A9%E6%9C%9D>!!


准男人~橙之:

Actually, not entirely. I think the government doing this [having such
policies] is due to legitimate reasons. The current situation is only
temporary. Sooner or later there will come a day where our country will be
strong and powerful, walking in front [at the top]. Perhaps it is because
we attracted foreign investment and high-level people [foreign talent]
that this happens.